How can a child get acting experience?
You can get a child acting experience by going to as many auditions as possible, by hiring a coach, or signing up with a workshop, and on that note: it's very important for parents to be wary of over-priced workshops and over-priced managers and agents that want big down payments and big financial commitments from the parents. Those typically are not the professional coaches that are really going to help the children. So, when I get a call from a parent that says I was approached in the mall, this company wants me to go down on Saturday and they want 1400 dollars for a six week program and they want me to go to their photographer for another 2500 dollars in pictures. I tell them that's a cash cow for those people. Those people aren't going to get you jobs in a professional, commercial situation in New York or L.A. or Chicago. What you want to do is either hire a local photographer or take some good pictures yourself of the kids at the park, get the pictures to agents. A respectful and a professional agent will only charge you after they have gotten you the job. So, if they get you a commercial for Sears, they'll get their commission when you get paid. They won't have you pay up front and so that's pretty much the limitless test.
